From 1 October 2015 Germany will extend its HGV levy to include vehicles exceeding 7.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight. At the same time, the way toll tariffs are calculated will be changing.

Vehicles under 7.5 tonnes gross tonnage will not attract the charge, unless a trailer they are pulling means they exceed the threshold.

The toll tariff is calculated from an infrastructure element to cover road usage and an air pollution element to cover the emissions caused by the vehicle. The former depends on the number of axles and as of 1 October 2015 will be extended from two to four axle categories (2, 3, 4 and 5+ axles). The latter depends on the emission class of the vehicle and will remain unchanged.

Furthermore, on 1 July a further 1100km of German A-roads were added to the toll network. This includes an extension of existing toll roads as well as ‘islands’ of toll roads surrounded by toll-free roads. Only the latter are marked by road signs. The full list of toll roads can be found here: www.mauttabelle.de (in German only).

Charges range from 8.1 Cent to 21.8 Cent per kilometre and must be paid in advance after registration with Toll Collect, the company administering the scheme. Early registration is recommended as the process can take a few days, after which payment is possible via an on-board unit, the internet or toll pay machines.